Month: July 2015

Stopping Spread of Bacteria – Cutting Boards

Here are some great tips to consider to help stop the spread of bacteria. Everyone should have a minimum of two boards. One board for raw foods and one for cooked foods. \ Sanitize cutting boards with bleach. Also, make sure any cutting board purchased comes with the NSF Safety Seal for food safety. Learn more

Toxic Algae Bloom – Lake Erie

This year could be a record year for toxic algae bloom in some areas. The heavy rains received in June are a major contributor to this issue. Check out this story and learn more about this issue. Here is an updated look at this issue, recorded July 27, 2015 Check out the following article that

Too Much Rain for Corn Growers

2015 – The theme has been “rain”. Too much rain forced many growers to plant late. During the month of June, the rains continued and it was evident that the plants were going to need additional nutrient applications to make it through the season. See for yourself how one grower, Brian Scott has been affected

Order Your Soil Probes Today!

Fall sampling is almost here. Time to get your order in today. Over the weekend, we received 5 orders for soil probes. Soil testing is becoming very popular with the advent of precision ag programs and new software programs being released almost daily which use soil analysis data combined with climate data and nutrient application

Grubs are Coming Back To Your Lawn

Updated 8.30pm / July 27, 2015 Ok – After watching the video below, I decided I needed to try a little experiment. I applied some Scotts Grubex in areas where my lawn had brown spots and I watered in these areas. As I looked at my own lawn, I could see that these

Summer Lawn Weed Problem?

Are Weeds Taking Over Parts of Your Lawn This Summer? The weeds are back and back in a big way this summer. Time to take some action! As I look at my own yard, I don’t remember a time when dandelions were still growing. Also, crab grass is back in a big way and weeds

Recycling Food Waste

What happens to food waste being produced by food producers? Check out this video which looks at several examples of how food waste is being put back into our environment to reuse. Who would have thought that cell phone glass could be made out of food waste. photo credit: plate scraping via photopin (license)

Ethanol Demand – An Interesting Perspective

Check out this interview with Green Plains CEO, Todd Becker and seen where the Ethanol Industry stands with respect to the economy. This story is really interesting. Todd does a good job of looking at Ethanol as a sustainable business. Overall, Ethanol is a discounted fuel compared to traditional gasoline. The international market is becoming

Fertilize Your Lawn in July?

Yes! – This year I fertilized my lawn in July I added a slow-release fertilizer with a 30% Nitrogen content. I typically use this type of fertilizer in a fall or late spring time frame. I typically do not recommend this type of application during the summer, because the temperatures in the midwest, (Omaha, Nebraska) are in the

E.coli in Lakes

Check out this story out of Michigan. It gives a good perspective on the process of monitoring e.Coli levels in Lake Michigan. Remember, e.Coli is always present to some extent in lake water. You can take precautions by making sure you wash your hands and body, especially before eating so you do not transmit the